Panda Base & Leshan Giant Buddha Day Tour Chengdu

Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding

The Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding lies in the green hills on the northern edge of Chengdu, about half an hour from the city centre. It was founded in 1987 with a handful of giant pandas rescued from the wild, and has since become a world leader in panda breeding and research. Today it is a large landscaped park of bamboo groves, lakes and open-air enclosures, home to many giant pandas as well as red pandas.

A Chengdu Panda Base tour is best early in the morning. The base opens at about 07:30, and pandas are most active at their morning feed, when they sit and crunch fresh bamboo for hours. By late morning, especially in summer, many retreat to sleep in the shade or in air-conditioned indoor halls. That is why our day starts early and we arrive at opening time.

Pandas, cubs and red pandas

Inside the base our guide leads you along the main paths to the enclosures of adult pandas, the young pandas that tumble and climb in their play areas, and, when they are on view, the cubs in the nursery. Giant pandas spend most of their day eating, as bamboo gives them little energy, and watching them hold a stem in their paws and peel it is a favourite moment for every visitor.

Do not miss the red pandas, smaller reddish-brown animals with ringed tails that are often seen moving through the trees. The visit takes about two and a half to three hours. The park is large and hilly, and an electric shuttle runs inside for those who prefer to ride; it is not included and can be paid on site. Is the Chengdu Panda Base worth visiting? For most travellers to Sichuan it is the highlight of the trip.

Leshan Giant Buddha

After the pandas we drive south for about two and a quarter hours to Leshan, where three rivers, the Min, the Dadu and the Qingyi, meet below Lingyun Hill. Here a seated Maitreya Buddha is carved into the red sandstone cliff, facing the water. Work began in 713 during the Tang dynasty and took about ninety years. At 71 m tall, it is the largest stone Buddha in the world, with a head about 14.7 m high and feet wide enough for dozens of people to stand on.

The carvers built a hidden drainage system into the hair coils, ears and folds of the robe, which has helped protect the statue from erosion for over twelve centuries. Together with nearby Mount Emei, the Leshan Giant Buddha Scenic Area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Lunch is at a local restaurant near the scenic area at your own expense before the visit.

The cliffside path to the Buddha's feet

The visit begins at the top of Lingyun Hill, beside the Buddha's head, where you can look straight into the giant face and see the carved hair coils up close. From there the Nine-Bend Plank Walk, a narrow stairway cut into the cliff, zigzags down the side of the statue to the platform at its feet. Looking up from the bottom gives the best sense of its enormous scale.

Allow about two hours in the scenic area. On weekends and Chinese public holidays the queue for the cliff path can be long, and your guide will plan the route to save time. The steps are steep and can be wet, so good shoes are essential. After the visit you take the scenic-area shuttle back to the vehicle for the drive to Chengdu.

Leshan Giant Buddha day trip from Chengdu: timing and season

How to get to Leshan Giant Buddha from Chengdu: the drive takes about two to two and a half hours each way, and high-speed trains also run between Chengdu and Leshan, but combining the pandas and the Buddha in one day is only realistic with organised transport like this tour. Expect to be back at Tianfu Square at about 19:30, depending on traffic.

The best time to visit Chengdu and Leshan is spring (March to May) and autumn (September to November), with mild weather. Summer is hot and humid, so the early panda visit matters even more; winter is cool and grey but quieter. Avoid the May holiday, the National Day week in early October and Chinese New Year if you can, as both sites are very crowded then.